


My Girl

by spellmanmanor



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018)
Genre: Eldritch Terrors, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, Kidnapping, Post-Caligari Spell (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Zarie, caos part 4, fuck Faustus Blackwood, he's a little bitch
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:22:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 15,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25550503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spellmanmanor/pseuds/spellmanmanor
Summary: The kiss is what started it all. That sweet, perfect kiss. Zelda never thought she'd be able to love anyone again, but maybe, just maybe, Marie could be an exception.Title is from the song we fell in love in october by girl in red
Relationships: Marie LaFleur (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina)/Zelda Spellman, Marie LaFleur/Zelda Spellman
Comments: 29
Kudos: 56





	1. Your Kiss Is Sugary Sweet

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter title from the song Cake by Melanie Martinez
> 
> my requests are open so please send them in on my tumblr @vinegartomspellman
> 
> please comment and leave kudos, support means a lot!

Zelda took a sip of her whiskey and looked over at the woman sitting opposite her. They were sitting in her office with the fire crackling behind them and trying to let the events of the day sink into their minds. The Pagans were gone for now and the coven was at peace, yet there still seemed to be some dark energy surrounding the Greendale witches. As if she read her mind, Marie sat up suddenly and said. "Zelda, there is an even darker force on the horizon I fear. A sense of sa ki mal lingers in the air. We must harness your coven's maternal pouvwa for protection and prepare them for war." Zelda sat up and rested her arm on the back of the chair and looked into Marie's dark eyes. "Am I to take it that means you'll be staying on?" She asked. Marie smirked. "Only if I am welcome, ma cherie." She replied. Zelda felt a sudden urge to do what she'd thought about doing ever since Marie took her hand after she had caught her teaching the students one of her rituals. She leaned forward and cupped Marie's face with her hand and kissed her. Marie instantly reciprocated and moved her hand up to tangle in Zelda's golden locks. Zelda's glass slipped from her hand and dropped to the floor, spilling whiskey over the rug, but she didn't care. All she cared about in that moment was Marie. After a few moments, they pulled away and just stared at each other. Marie smiled sweetly at her. "I'll take that as a yes." She said, breaking the silence. Zelda laughed, making Marie's heart skip a beat. She had the most beautiful laugh, it was like music to her ears. 

Zelda looked up at the clock that was on the wall behind Marie. 'That's strange.' She thought when she saw it was stuck at exactly midnight. Witching hour. "I should be getting back to the mortuary. My family are probably wondering where I am." She said, looking back over at Marie. "Of course. I should head up to my room too." She said. She placed her cup on the small table next to the sofa and stood up. "Goodnight ma cherie. Blessed dreams." She said and kissed Zelda lightly on the cheek before leaving the office. Zelda stared after her for a moment, smiling at the faint warm feeling that had filled her chest. She stood up, but had forgotten about her shattered glass that was on the floor and put her foot right onto it. She gasped in pain and looked down to see a shard of glass sticking out of her foot. "Blaze it!" She scowled and gently sat back down again and tried to pull it out. It was a lot more painful than she had expected. She felt light headed from the loss of blood and the room was spinning slightly. She managed to remove the shard from her foot, but before she could do anything about the bleeding, she lost consciousness. 

As Marie was walking up to her room, she realised she had left her earrings in Zelda's office. She had taken them off once they had gotten there because they were rather heavy and her ears were hurting after wearing them all day. She quickly turned around and returned back to the office. She knocked on the door but there was no answer. Zelda must have already gone home, she thought. She slowly opened the door so she could quickly sneak in there and grab them, but was greeted with the sight of Zelda unconscious on the sofa with a small puddle of blood dripping onto the floor from her foot. "Zelda!" She gasped and quickly ran over to her. She sat on the sofa and pulled Zelda into her arms, trying to wake her. She stirred and her eyes slowly opened. "What happened?" She mumbled. "You fainted ma cherie and your foot is injured." She told her, gently stroking hair out of Zelda's face. "Damned blood pressure." Zelda sighed and sat up. "This happens often?" Marie asked, producing a hanky out of her pocket to hold against Zelda's wound whilst she looked for bandages. "Since I was a girl. Father said it was a sign of weakness so I never really got it looked at." She told her, pressing the cut whilst Marie found some bandages in Zelda's desk. Marie sat down next to her and began cleaning her foot with antiseptic. Zelda winced at the stinging. "Sorry!" Marie apologised and placed her free hand onto Zelda's. Once she finished cleaning it, she wrapped a bandage around it and secured it tightly. "Thank you." Zelda smiled. "No problem. Can you get home okay on your own?" Marie asked. "Yes, I'll teleport." Zelda replied. Marie packed the bandages away and turned to her. "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow, ma cherie." She smiled and left once again. 

Zelda sighed and teleported to the front hall of the Spellman mortuary. "Zelds! There you are! What happened to your foot?" Hilda, who was coming down the stairs, asked. "Nothing, it's just a small cut. Marie sorted it." She said and ignored her sister's confused look and went upstairs. Hilda shook her head and went into the kitchen were her niece and nephew were sitting. "Auntie Zee back?" Ambrose asked. "Yes love, she's upstairs." She replied, sitting down with them. "You two should go to bed too, you've had a long day, you must be tired." She said and looked up at the clock. 'How weird.' She thought when she saw the hands were stuck at midnight. She ignored it and smiled at the teens as the left the table to go to bed.


	2. Blood Red Roses

A light knock on her office door was what made Zelda look up from the endless pile of papers she was marking. Marie stood in the doorway with a bunch of freshly picked red roses in her hand. "Sorry to bother you ma cherie, but I was taking a walk through the woods and I came across the most beautiful rose bush and couldn't resist picking some. i thought they'd look nice on your desk." She smiled, coming into the room and stopping in front of where Zelda was sitting. "Thank you Marie." Zelda replied as she placed them into the empty vase that was on the desk. "No problem, I'll see you later." Marie said and lent down to place a kiss on Zelda's cheek before leaving. Zelda could feel the heat rising to her cheeks and looked down at the papers, trying to distract herself from the warm feeling inside of her. She glanced over at the roses, which happened to be her favourite flower, and only felt the warm feeling grow. They were very beautiful, just like the person who had gave them to her, though Zelda would never admit that. She thought back to the last time someone had gave her flowers. It was just under a year ago, after she had married Faustus. He would come into their bedchambers each night with a bunch of pale pink roses and gift them to her, and she had no choice other than to thank him in that sickly sweet tone he had bestowed on her and get up to twirl over to the vase that sat on her dressing table and place them in there. She hated pink roses, but they matched the aesthetic of the pretty and sweet persona Faustus had made her into and she couldn't complain. Literally.

She was brought out of her thoughts by the feeling of a thorn piercing her fingertip. She hadn't even realised that she'd reached out to touch the flowers and roughly pulled her hand away. A drop of blood landed on the paper she was currently marking, staining the pristine white paper. Before she had the chance to fix her mistake, Hilda came bustling into the room carrying a plate of biscuits in one hand and a tray with two teas on in the other. "Hey sis! I brought you some lovely refreshments to get you through the day. A spot of chamomile tea ought to help calm the stress that comes with running a coven!" She cheerfully said, placing the tray and plate down in front of Zelda. She rolled her eyes but picked up a biscuit and took a bite. "What happened to your finger?" Hilda asked, pointing at the blood that was still dripping from Zelda's forgotten injury. "Nothing." Zelda muttered and magicked the thorn prick and blood away. "Who brought you those?" Her sister asked, sitting in one of the chairs in front of her desk and gesturing to the roses. "Marie." She quietly replied, blushing at just the thought of the voodoo priestess. "You two seem to get on well! Do you think she'll become a permanent fixture in the coven? Oh, you should invite her for dinner at the mortuary!" Hilda exclaimed. Zelda sighed. "Sister, I have a lot of work to be doing and I really don't have time for your silly questions!" She snapped. Hilda shook her head but got up to leave. "As you wish High Priestess!" She laughed and left the room.

Zelda sighed and looked down at her stuffed familiar who was sat at her feet. His lifeless, droopy eyes looked up at her and she gave him a small smile. "What in hell am I going to do Vinnie?" She muttered.


	3. The Eldritch Released

Zelda walked through the front door of the Spellman Mortuary later than she had planned. She'd stayed behind at the academy after classes had finished to continue marking papers and hadn't realised how late it had gotten due to the clock in her office being stuck at midnight. It wasn't until she had a quick look at her mobile phone, which Sabrina had made her get so she could 'keep up with the times' and saw it was almost 9pm. She had told Hilda she would be back by dinner time and could see multiple concerned messages from her sister and niece asking where she was. She sighed and teleported to the mortuary, leaving the papers on her desk so she could finish them in the morning. 

"There you are! We were getting worried!" Hilda said when she came into the kitchen. "I lost track of time. The clock in my office is stuck at-" "Midnight?" Hilda butted in. "So is all the ones in the house. Actually, come to think of it, every clock I've come across has been stuck at midnight, apart from our phones." She stated. "How strange. That can't be a coincidence?." Zelda said. "I don't know love. But anyways, I saved you some dinner." Hilda smiled and placed a plate in front of her. "Maybe I should visit Lilith in Hell tomorrow and see if she knows anything about this clock situation." Zelda said as she ate. "Oh no Auntie! Let me! I need to speak to Lilith anyways!" Sabrina insisted. Zelda raised her eyebrow in confusion but nodded her head, ignoring her niece's strange behaviour. She didn't catch the look both Ambrose and Sabrina threw at each other. "Cous, can I have a word?" Ambrose said, standing up and gesturing to the hall. Sabrina got up and followed him. 

"You need to tell the aunties about the time paradox." He said. "What? No, I can't! Not yet anyways!" She said. "Sabrina, they're beginning to notice something's up. All the clocks being stuck at midnight isn't a coincidence. Plus, Auntie Zee always finds out things, she's not stupid. She'll work out what you've done eventually and they'll be heaven to pay. You might as well just tell them now." He replied. Sabrina sighed. "I will tell them, but not yet. Just give me a bit more time." She said and went back into the kitchen. 

Just as Ambrose was going to follow her, someone knocked on the front door. He turned on his heel and went to open it. To his surprise, Mambo Marie was standing on their doorstep. "Hello Ambrose. Is your Aunt Zelda home?" She asked him. "Eh yeah, I'll go fetch her." He said and turned around and disappeared through a door. A few moments later, Zelda emerged from that same door. "Marie! What do I owe the pleasure?" She asked, smiling at the voodoo priestess. "I was wondering if you'd like to come for a walk with me? I haven't yet explored the Greendale forest completely and I'd love if you could join me!" Marie replied. Zelda looked surprised but grabbed her fur coat from the hanger next to the door and said, "Of course." She shouted to her family that she was going out then stepped onto the porch and locked the door. 

As they were making their way to the forest, they exchanged light small talk. Marie gradually stepped closer to Zelda and slipped her hand in her's. Zelda blushed but kept a hold on her warm grasp. The night sky was lit by the many stars that patterned the sky and the moon was large and full, casting a silvery light on the earth around them. They followed a small, twisty path through the woods, stepping over tree roots and occasionally stopping so Marie could pick various berries to use in her potions. They came across a clearing in the trees and saw a large stone structure sitting in the middle of it. The yapproached it cautiously and saw a large, cracked glass feature lying on top of it. Candles were scattered around the clearing and a burned out bonfire was laying off to the side of the stone. Zelda picked up a bit of the thing laying on the stone. "It's a shell." She said, turning it in her hand. "What do you think was inside it?" Marie asked. The witch examined the rest of the shell and realised she recognised the patterns on it. "It's the egg that Ambrose and Prudence brought back from Scotland when they caught Faustus. It held the Eldritch Terrors." She said, quickly dropping the shell back onto the stone. "But it's broken..." Marie said. "Which means they're released into the world. We have to warn the Coven!" She exclaimed but before either of them could leave the clearing, they heard a rustle in the bushes. Then a giggle. Zelda recognised that giggle. 

Agatha stepped out of the bushes with a manic smile plastered on her face. "Hello Lady Blackwood." She laughed.


	4. Sorry, Sorry

Zelda took a step back, keeping her distance from Agatha. "Agatha, what are you doing here?" She asked, trying her hardest to keep her voice from trembling whilst discreetly looking around to see if her ex husband was lurking anywhere. "Father Blackwood asked me to come fetch you. He wants his wife back, Lady Blackwood." Agatha smiled, twirling one of her pigtails around her finger. "I'm not Lady Blackwood." Zelda stated, taking another step back towards Marie, who reached her hand out. Zelda gratefully took it. "Lady Blackwood, Father said I must get you. If you don't come willingly, I'm going to have to hurt you!" Agatha giggled, pulling a knife out of her pocket and twisting it in her hands. Marie pulled Zelda behind her and stood protectively. "No Agatha. She's not going anywhere with you." She said, her voice deep and her eyes piercing into the girl's. In a second, Agatha lunged towards the two women and tried to stab Marie, who quickly jumped out of the way. She turned to see Agatha had a hold of Zelda and was holding the knife to her throat, giggling the whole time. Marie raced towards them and pulled Agatha away and onto the floor. She held her down whilst shouting at Zelda to run. She didn't however, just stayed and watched her struggle with the demented girl. 

She got an idea of how to help and closed her eyes. She summoned Prudence to the scene, who was shocked to see what was happening when she appeared. "Sister!" She gasped and ran towards Marie and Agatha. "Prudence! Come to join me!" Agatha gleefully said. "Let go of her Marie, I can sort this." Prudence said and once Marie let go of her, she lifted her hand and cast a spell that knocked Agatha unconscious. She scooped her sister into her arms, holding her close. "Oh sister, what has he done to you?" She whispered, a tear rolling down her cheek. Marie ran to Zelda's side. "Are you okay?" She asked, cupping the redhead's cheek. "I'm fine." Zelda nodded, resting her hand on top of Marie's. "You can bring her back to the Academy, Prudence. We'll give her asylum and try and fix the mess Faustus has made her into." She said, looking towards the two girls. "Thank you Sister Spellman. I can try and restrain her so she doesn't hurt anyone but I'll have to get Melvin and Elspeth to help me. I'll go now but maybe you should warn the coven. If I'm right in thinking that that is the time egg over there, we don't have a lot of time until the Eldritch Terrors arrive." She said, pointing towards the broken shell on the stone table. "Of course, just focus on looking after your sister, I'll handle everything else." Zelda told her. Prudence nodded then disappeared with Agatha. 

Marie and Zelda slowly walked back to the Academy, the shock of the attack still present in their minds. Zelda sighed. "You don't have to stay in Greendale, you know? The coven isn't your responsibility." She said, turning to Marie. "Ma cherie, I want to stay. I want to help you. These Eldritch Terrors are dark and dangerous and your coven will need all the help it can get." Marie replied, taking Zelda's hand in her's. "Thank you, but you could get hurt. I don't want to put anymore people in danger than I can help." Zelda said, not looking her in the eye. She didn't want Marie to leave of course, but that little voice in her head couldn't let her have this one good thing and was set on pushing it away. Marie sighed and pulled Zelda closer by her hand. "Zelda, I am staying, that is final." She said and lightly kissed Zelda on the lips. Once they'd pulled away, they walked back to the Academy in silence.

Zelda went to find Prudence as soon as they got there whilst Marie checked on the other students. She found her and Agatha in one of the spare bedrooms. Prudence had managed to tie her sister to the bed whilst she was unconscious and was now watching her sleeping peacefully. "Will those ropes hold her?" Zelda asked when she entered the room, making the younger witch jump. "I hope so. I've placed a few restraining spells on her too, just in case." Prudence told her. "Was my Father there tonight?" She asked. Zelda shook her head. "No where to be found still, as is Leticia and Judas. We'll get them back though, I promise." Zelda said, placing her hand reassuringly on Prudence's shoulders. "And my Father? What will be done with him once we find him?" She asked. "I don't know Prudence. I don't like to think about him." Zelda sighed. There was a moments pause before Prudence mumbled, "I'm sorry." Zelda raised her eyebrow in confusion. "Why?" She asked. "For not helping you. I could tell what my Father had done to you, but I didn't know what to do! So I let it happen, and I'm sorry for that." Prudence said, looking anywhere but Zelda. "You don't need to apologise. You were in no power to help me." Zelda quietly said. 

Prudence looked up at the woman standing beside her. She admired Zelda Spellman a lot. She was probably the most powerful, strongest person she knew and she had a lot of respect for her. But she also felt sorry for her. Her Father had done an unspeakable thing to the older witch and even though she never said it, she could tell it had affected Zelda greatly. Prudence felt slightly responsible for the spell, for allowing it to go on for as long as it did. She wanted to make it right, but she didn't know how. So instead she stood up and gently hugged Zelda, much to the High Priestess' surprise. After a few seconds however, Zelda returned the hug. "Even though you say I shouldn't be, I really am sorry Zelda. And I will do whatever I can to find my Father and put him through as much Hell as he did to you, I promise." Prudence said and then pulled away. She sat back down next to her sleeping sister, not looking at the older witch to hide the tears that were in her eyes. Zelda didn't know what to say so just nodded and said, "Goodnight Prudence." and left the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments and kudos xx


	5. They've Come For Us

Sabrina appeared in the hallway of the palace in Hell and quickly ran to Lilith's chambers. She knocked and entered once Lilith told her to come in and find her sitting at her vanity table, brushing her hair. "Sabrina? What are you doing here? You're meant to be in a meeting with The Plague Kings." She asked her. 'So that's what the other me is up to.' Sabrina thought as she approached the older woman.   
"Lilith, I need to tell you something but you have to promise not to tell anyone about this!" She said. Lilith nodded. "After we won the fight with the Pagans, I was meant to come back her and fix my time loop. But I didn't." She didn't look Lilith in the eye, already worried about her reaction.   
"Sabrina. What have you done?" Lilith said in a warning tone, standing from her seat.   
"I created a time paradox! I wanted to be Queen of Hell but I also just wanted my normal life back, so I thought if there were two of me, I could have both and everything would be fine, except they're not! I think somethings gone wrong, terribly wrong. All the clocks in Greendale are stuck at the witching hour and some kind of dark energy is in the air and I need your help to fix this!" She looked up at Lilith, whose face was slowly going red with anger.   
"Sabrina, how could you be so careless! Not only could this destroy the whole world, but when the Dark Lord finds out, he's going to kill us both!" Lilith exclaimed.   
"He won't find out if you help me fix this!" Sabrina replied.   
"I'm done helping you Sabrina. Every single chance you get you throw it away! Fix this yourself!" Lilith sat back at her vanity and roughly picked up her brush and continued brushing her hair.   
"I'll help you become Queen if you help me!" Sabrina blurted out. Lilith looked at her in the mirror.   
"The last time you said that you ended up taking the throne for yourself. Why should I believe you now?" She asked.   
"Because the world is in danger and I won't let myself be responsible for the Apocalypse." Sabrina said. The older witch sighed.   
"Fine, I'll help you, so long as you promise me that once this is fixed, the throne is mine!" Lilith bargained.   
"I promise." Sabrina agreed. "  
Okay, let's devise a plan then."

"Cherie, sit down please, you'll make yourself tired from all that pacing!" Marie begged Zelda as she paced up and down her office.   
"If what we saw in the forest was the time egg, we don't have a lot of time before the Eldritch Terrors reach the coven." Zelda muttered as she ran a hand through her hair.  
"Zelda." Marie said, standing up and walking over to the other witch.  
"And if Faustus is close by that means the coven is in even more trouble." She continued, ignoring Marie.  
"Zelda." Marie said again, stepping in front of the redhead.  
"And if what Agatha says is true, he's out there looking for me now and it won't be long until-"  
"Zelda!" Marie grabbed Zelda's arm to stop her pacing and she finally noticed her. "Are you okay?" She asked, cupping her cheek and looking into her green eyes. Zelda diverted her gaze to the ground, unable to look Marie in the eyes.  
"I'm fine Marie." She sighed.  
"Don't lie to me Zelda. It's okay to not be okay and I'm here for you no matter what." Marie lightly caressed her cheek whilst speaking. Zelda roughly pulled away.  
"I said I'm fine!" She insisted and walked over to the window, staring out of it.  
"Cherie, please. I just want to help." She said, walking behind Zelda. Zelda didn't say anything. Marie placed her hand on Zelda's shoulder and she let out a gasp. "What is it? ARe you okay? Did I hurt you??!" Marie fussed, pulling her hand away.  
"No Marie, look!" Zelda pointed at the window. Marie stood beside her and her mouth fell open when she also saw wha Zelda was pointing out. A dark, smokey cloud was approaching the Academy, covering everything in its path with a thick black fog. Sparks of energy appeared throughout the smoke and the feeling of death and destruction filled the air in its wake.  
"It's the Eldritch Terrors." Marie whispered. Zelda nodded.  
"They've come for us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments, they're much appreciated xx


	6. A Letter Through The Door

Hilda had just shut the door to the dormitory after saying goodnight to the students when she heard footsteps running down the corridor and spotted her sister and Marie coming towards her. "Woah Zelds, what's the rush?" She laughed when the redhead stopped in front of her.   
"The Eldritch Terrors! They're coming!" She said through deep breaths. Her face was even paler than usual and Hilda could just make out that she was shaking slightly. "Get Sabrina and Ambrose and warn them whilst me and Marie cast protection spells around the academy." She told her sister then the two women rushed down the hall, leaving Hilda to contact their niece and nephew.

Sabrina appeared with a look of shock on her face once Hilda had summoned her. "Aunt Hilda? What's happening?" She asked, looking around to see if she could spot any signs of danger.   
"The Eldritch Terrors are here. Where's Ambrose? We all need to be together." Hilda replied. Thunder rumbled around them, making the pictures on the walls and the various bookcases in the hall shake. "Aunties!" They both heard someone shout and saw Ambrose running towards them. "Aunt Hilda! Sabrina! There's some strange dark cloud ascending on the Academy!" He shouted as he spotted his aunt and cousin and stopped beside them.   
"We know lamb, it's the Eldritch Terrors. Come on, your Aunt Zelda will need our help to protect the Academy." Hilda told them and they ran to find Zelda and Marie.

"Do you think this will work?" Zelda asked after her and Marie had cast the last protection spell on the front door of the Academy.  
"We can only hope ma cherie." Marie replied and put her arm around Zelda, noticing she was shaking slightly. Zelda flinched at the sudden embrace, a look of guilt covering her features as soon as she did. Marie took a step away, giving her space. 

"Aunt Zelda? Mambo Marie? Is the Academy protected?" Sabrina asked from behind them. They both turned to face the rest of the Spellman family.   
"I think so, though I don't know how long the spells are going to last. We need to find a stronger protection." Zelda replied. Hilda noticed that her sister was chewing her bottom lip, something she only did when she was extremely anxious.   
"I think I have some spells stowed away at the Mortuary that will strengthen the protections." She piped up, wanting to help her sister.  
"And I can ask Lilith to help." Sabrina added. Before Zelda could reply, the letter box on the front door blew open with a gust of wind and a letter was slipped through it. She went over to it and bent down to pick it up. She carefully opened the envelope, which was addressed to her and began silently reading it. Her face lost all colour as she read the messy scrawl that was covering the page.  
"Auntie Zee? What is it? What does the letter say?" Ambrose asked, stepping forward and placing a hand on his aunt's arm. She violently flinched and looked up at her family.  
"It's from Faustus. He's... he's coming." She stuttered, her hands trembling as she folded the letter back into the envelope. Sabrina looked at her cousin and other aunt, both of their faces reflected the worry that she felt.   
"Does it say when Zelds?" Hilda asked, coming to stand beside her sister. Zelda's trembling had worsened and she looked as though she was going to pass out.   
"No, it just says soon. Hildie, take Sabrina, Ambrose and the rest of the students to the basement, it's more protected down there." She demanded through shaky breaths.  
"Are you coming with us?" Sabrina asked.  
"I'll be down later, I just need to sort a few things first." Zelda said, glancing anxiously at the front door which was rattling from the force of the wind outside.  
"I'll stay with her, don't worry." Marie told them, flashing them a reassuring smile to show them she would make sure Zelda was safe. Hilda just nodded and ushered Sabrina and Ambrose out of the front hall and towards the dorms.

"Ma cherie, what do you need to do? I'll help you so we can get to safety quickly." Marie said, taking one of Zelda's shaking hands in her own.   
"I need to get some books from my office, they have spells in them that can help us." Zelda replied and tugged at Marie's hand so that she would follow her down the hall. Halfway down the hallway, Zelda halted and grasped onto a bookshelf that was nearby.  
"Zelda, are you okay?" Marie asked, grabbing her arm to keep her upright.  
"I don't feel so good Marie." Zelda muttered and then passed out. Marie caught her and held her in her arms. They were only a few doors away from Marie's private chambers so she quickly carried her there and laid her on the bed. She pried the letter that Zelda was still holding out of her hand and laid it on the beside table as Zelda began to come around.   
"What happened?" She asked, pressing her hand to her forehead.   
"You passed out, your blood pressure is incredibly high. You need to rest cherie." Marie replied, brushing some stray ginger locks that had fallen in Zelda's face out of the way. Zelda was already drifting off before Marie had finished her sentence, so she pulled a soft blanket over her sleeping body and got to work looking through her own possessions to see if she could find anything that could help the coven, but there was nothing besides a few protection candles, which she lit to protect the sleeping witch that was laying on her bed.

She sat beside Zelda and curiosity took over her and she opened the letter that was lying on the bedside table. 'Zelda Phiona Spellman' was written on the front of it in messy cursive and some of the ink had ran down the page, probably due to the rain. Marie carefully unfolded the paper and began reading.

𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒁𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒂  
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒚𝒆𝒅. 𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒎𝒆. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒑𝒂𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕. 𝑺𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒎 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒁𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒂 𝑺𝒑𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒏. 𝑺𝒐 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒍𝒖𝒄𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰'𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏...  
𝑭𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒔

Marie shoved the letter back in the envelope and looked over at Zelda. Worry coursed through her veins as she wondered what those threats could mean. What did he mean by she lied to him? What had happened between them that had made their marriage become like this? The only thing Marie was sure of was that no matter what, she would protect Zelda, just as she had when she was hovering between the realms of living and dead. 

She reached over and tucked a curl of hair behind Zelda's ear and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. She then stood up and went over to the couch, laid down and fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	7. Night Mime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: s*xual assualt, only brief and not very descriptive. If this affects you please skip this chapter or skip to the paragraph that has a * at the beginning. stay safe lovelies xx

Zelda turned her head and her face was met with the feeling of soft silk pillows. She opened her eyes and abruptly sat up when she realised she wasn't in her room. She looked around at the decor and it quickly dawned on her that she was in the bedroom her and Faustus had shared during their honeymoon. She looked down and saw she was dressed in one of the silky floral nightgowns Faustus had bought for her and could just about make out the sound of the music box playing in the distance. Everything felt foggy and when she tried to stand up, she realised she couldn't.

The door to the bedroom opened and Faustus came sauntering in with a smug smile plastered on his face. Her heart began beating a hundred miles an hour when his eyes laid on her and his smile grew. "Zelda, dearest, you're awake!" He amused and sat on the bed beside her. She tried to shift over to get as far away from him as possible but was unable to. He chuckled. "You're not going anywhere sweetheart." He said and ran a hand through her hair.   
"Get off me!" She shouted and he pulled his hand away in shock.  
"I see the spell hasn't taken full effect yet, but not to worry. Everything will be back to how it was soon." He smiled and pressed a sloppy kiss to her cheek. Zelda could feel tears welling up in her eyes but couldn't move her hand to wipe them away. "Aw sweetheart, don't cry. This is going to be good for you. You need to learn how to be a good and obedient wife again and I'm going to help you." He cooed, wiping a tear from her cheek. His tone made her feel sick.  
"Faustus, please! Just let me go! Don't do this!" She cried.  
"Hush now wife." He whispered, pressing a finger to her lips and then pushing her to lay back down on the bed.   
"Faustus no!" She sobbed, trying to push him away.  
"Soon I'll be arriving and claim what is mine." He chuckled, kissing her roughly. 

"𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦!"

Zelda could hear another voice in the distance but it was muffled and quiet. Faustus' hands were gripping at her arms to keep her still and she was sure his nails had pierced through her skin. 

"𝘡𝘦𝘭𝘥𝘢, 𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘶𝘱!"

*Was that Marie? Zelda could feel her mind pushing through the fog that surrounded her and suddenly her eyes flew open to see Marie looking down at her with concern plastered on her face. Her gentle hands were resting softly on Zelda's shoulders where she had previously been trying to shake her awake. Zelda flinched from her touch and quickly moved her hand up to wipe away the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. It was a dream, it was just a dream. 

"Ma cherie, are you okay? You were screaming and crying in your sleep." Marie informed her, cupping her cheek softly. Tears were still falling down her face and she was shaking but she pushed Marie's hand away and sat up.  
"I'm fine." She insisted, though it was obvious to Marie that she wasn't.   
"What did you dream about?" Marie asked, sitting on the bed beside her. Zelda caught sight of the letter laying on the bedside table and started crying again. Marie's arms instantly wove their way around her body and she held her close as Zelda sobbed. "You can tell me Zelda, it's okay." She whispered whilst rubbing soothing circles on her back.  
"You'll think I'm weak." Zelda mumbled through her sobs.  
"Never." Marie assured her, pressing a soft kiss to her hair. That made Zelda cry harder. No one had ever been so sweet towards her.  
"When I was on my honeymoon with Faustus, he put me under a Caligari spell. It turns witches into somnambulists, completely aware of everything that's going on around them but unable to make their own choices. Whilst I was under it, he... he did things to me without my consent and it went on for weeks until Hilda broke the spell. I dreamt that it was happening again and it felt so real!" Zelda cried, her body flinching when she thought back to how Faustus had treated her.  
"Oh cherie." Marie gasped, holding her closer in her warm embrace. "I'm so sorry." She pressed another kiss to her hair and ran her fingers through the auburn locks. After a few moments, Zelda managed to compose herself and pulled away so she could look at Marie.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, you must think I'm pathetic." Zelda rolled her eyes at herself for daring to show such weakness. Marie gasped and took hold of Zelda's hands.   
"Listen to me, you are not weak for what you have been through. You are strong, Zelda Spellman, and you do not need to apologise for this. It is okay to be sad, it is okay to be scared. What this man did was horrific and you have every right to be upset by it." She cupped Zelda's face with her hands and pressed a light kiss to her lips. "I'm here for you ma cherie, and I will stand by your's and the coven's side to defeat this Blackwood man and the terrors that he has unleashed, that is a promise." She stated. Zelda sniffled and leaned forward to gently capture Marie's lips again. She didn't know how to thank her, she couldn't put into words how much she appreciated Marie for being so kind and sweet towards her, so this is all she could do. She tried to show how grateful she was through the kiss and hoped Marie would notice.

After they pulled away, Zelda carefully shifted out of Marie's arms and patted the bed beside her. "Can you stay with me? Please." She asked, her voice still trembling slightly.   
"Of course my sweet Zelda." Marie smiled and slipped under the covers beside her. She gently wrapped her arms around Zelda and quietly whispered a prayer to her Loa for protection for the woman in her arms. She'd need all the protection she could get for what was to come and Marie was determined to provide that, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	8. I Love You

Zelda woke to the feeling of warm arms around her. She instantly panicked, reminded of waking up to Faustus holding her tightly to his body whilst they slept to stop her running away, but that panic died down when she turned to see Marie's face beside her own. She smiled. Marie had been so sweet to her ever since they had met and last night she truly felt protected and cared for by the woman now holding her, but that made her scared. What if Marie betrayed her? What if she turned out to be like Faustus and hurt her in the same way he did? She couldn't go through that again, she wouldn't allow it. So Zelda carefully slipped out of Marie's arms and quietly left the bedroom, returning to her own. 

She looked at the clock that was beside her bed and saw it was 8 AM. Hilda would be serving the students breakfast by now and probably wondering where she was. She quickly changed into a black dress with a white collar, slipped some heels on and reapplied her makeup before heading downstairs, quickly checking to see if Marie had awoken on her way. She hadn't luckily. She couldn't handle a conversation with her right now.

Zelda walked into the basement where Hilda had gathered all the students the night before to keep them all together just in case the Eldritch Terrors broke through the protections. Her sister rushed towards her as soon as she walked in. "Where in heaven were you? I waited up all night for you to come down and you never did! What happened Zelds?" Hilda frantically asked. Zelda sighed.  
"Nothing sister." She said, not looking her in the eye.  
"Then why didn't you come down here?" Hilda pressed.  
"Hilda! I said nothing happened, now leave it!" Zelda snapped and walked away, going to stand beside Prudence and Sabrina. She didn't want to talk about last night, about Marie or her nightmare or her panic attack, especially to her sister who would just worry and get on her nerves. She busied herself with helping the students get breakfast and trying to stop them all from worrying about the storm brewing on the outside of the Academy.

Zelda looked up from her conversation with Elspeth for a second and saw Marie enter the basement with a smile on her face. She quickly looked back down, hoping Marie wouldn't notice her but she did. "Ma cherie, where did you go? I woke up and you were gone!" Marie said, coming to stand beside her. She tried to press a kiss to Zelda's cheek but she leaned away from her.  
"I came here." Zelda said, taking a step away from her.  
"Zelda, what's wrong?" Marie asked, reaching out to place a hand on her arm.  
"Nothing Marie, now if you'll excuse me!" Zelda snapped, brushing Marie's hand away and marching out of the room. Marie stared after her with worry.

"What's wrong with your sister?" Marie asked Hilda when she came to stand beside her.  
"I don't know, she's been snappy ever since she came down. Do you know where she was last night?" Hilda asked.  
"She was with me. She fainted so I brought her to my chambers." Marie informed her, choosing to leave out the part about the nightmare, thinking Zelda probably wouldn't want her telling anybody.  
"It was probably due to her blood pressure, it gets very high when she's stressed. You should of told me she was with you though, I was up all night worrying." Hilda quipped, crossing her arms.  
"I am sorry, I didn't think. I just wanted to make sure she rested." Marie apologised.  
"It's okay, I understand. Thank you for looking after her." Hilda smiled and then went over to Sabrina, who was having a very heated debate with Ambrose about something or other. Marie sighed and left the room to go find Zelda.

She found her on the porch of the Academy with a cigarette. "Ma cherie, come inside! It's dangerous out here!" Marie urged, approaching Zelda.  
"Leave me alone Marie." Zelda muttered, taking a drag of her cigarette whilst staring at the storm that was descending over the forest.  
"Zelda, what is wrong?" Marie placed her hand on Zelda's shoulder and she flinched.  
"I need some fresh air." Zelda stated and started to walk down the front steps.  
"No! It's dangerous out there with the Eldritch Terrors!" Marie grabbed Zelda's arm, stopping her from leaving.  
"Let go of me!" Zelda exclaimed, trying to wrench her arm out of her grip.  
"No! You'll get hurt if you go out there and I can't let that happen. I love you too much to let that happen!" Marie confessed. Zelda stopped struggling for a moment.  
"You what?" She spluttered, looking at the other woman with wide eyes.  
"I love you Zelda, and I can't let you get hurt." Marie said, bringing her hand up to cup Zelda's cheek. Zelda roughly pulled away and turned to run. "Zelda no!" Marie pleaded but it was to late. Zelda began running towards the edge of the woods. Marie tried to run to catch up with her but was stopped by Hilda who had heard the commotion from inside.  
"It's okay,she'll come back." She said, trying to usher Marie inside.  
"What if she gets hurt?" Marie whispered, a tear falling down her face. Hilda didn't answer, didn't know what to say. She continued gently guiding Marie back inside, praying to whoever that her sister would return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	9. The Dark Path

Zelda slowed to a walk once she was in the woods and knew Marie wasn't following her. The wind blew strong through the trees and the occasional lightning strike made the branches cast creepy shadows around her. The trees kept most of the rain from falling on her but the occasional drip would splash her, making her jump. Zelda had been in these woods more times than she could count and knew every twist and turn of the path, but for some reason tonight everything felt different. There was an extra turning where she was sure there wasn't one before and the whole forest was darker than she'd ever seen it. The usual bird song that would surround her whenever she took this path home from the Academy couldn't be heard, only the occasional call of a crow from above. Zelda shivered as a raindrop ran down the back of her neck and wrapped her blazer more tightly around her. She shouldn't have ran away like that, especially into the dark forest when the Eldritch Terrors was right above them. She turned around to head back but the path that she had previously been walking down had disappeared, there was just a wall of trees surrounding her meaning the only way she could go was forward. She continued to walk, jumping when a twig snapped under her foot or lightning flashed above her. She walked for a few more moments until she came across a clearing that she didn't recognise. A single crow was stood in the middle, looking straight at her with it's piercing dark eyes. 

Marie waited until Hilda was distracted with helping some students to slip out of the Academy basement and upstairs. She quietly stepped onto the porch and looked out at the dark and foreboding forest that was spread out in front of her. Zelda was in there somewhere and she was determined to find her. She hurried down the steps and into the entrance of the woods, following the twisty path deeper into the darkness.

Zelda took a small step towards the crow as it watched her every move. She waved her hand to try and scare it away but it just continued to stare at her. She pulled her cigarette holder out of her pocket and threw it at the creature, but it still just stood there, completely unbothered by her attempts to get it to go away. She decided to just walk around it, but as she skirted the edge of the clearing, it kept its unwavering gaze on her. She felt a chill go down her spine. Something was wrong, she knew it. Seeing a single crow was a sign of bad luck or danger, and the way this one was behaving was enough to tell her that something was up. 

As she took another step, she heard something move behind her. She spun around to see what it was but there was nothing, just trees and bushes. She took another step, forward this time towards the crow to retrieve her cigarette holder, but when she did, she felt a firm hand go over her mouth and an arm wrap around her waist. She screamed before she felt something prick her arm and she slipped into unconsciousness. 

Marie kept walking down the path, occasionally calling out for Zelda but getting no answer. Just as she was about to cast a searching spell, she heard a scream. She looked up with wide eyes and ran towards the direction it came from. She came into a clearing, her fast entrance scaring away a crow that was stood in the grass, and looked around to see if she could spot anyone. Nothing. "Zelda!" She shouted, panic clearly tinging her voice. Lightning lit up the sky and that was when she noticed something shiny on the floor. She bent down to pick it up and realised it was Zelda's cigarette holder. Her whole body went cold with panic when it dawned on her that that was Zelda's scream she had heard. She stood and shouted Zelda's name again but no answer. The rain poured onto her from above and the wind blew through the trees as she frantically ran through the forest trying to find her lover.

As she stopped for a moment to catch her breath, she felt herself be summoned and was teleported back to the academy. She blindly looked around, her eyes taking a while to adjust to the bright lights. Hilda was stood in front of her with concern on her face. "Hilda! Zelda's in trouble! I heard her scream and look!" She held out the cigarette holder that was clutched in her hand.   
"Oh Hecate help us!" Hilda gasped, taking the holder from her. 

"Auntie!" They both heard Ambrose shout as he ran into the hall, a letter in his hand. "This just came through the window!" He said, pushing it into his aunt's hand. Hilda opened it with shaking hands and all the colour left her face when she read it.

𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒁𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒂.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments xx


	10. Floral Dresses

Zelda woke up feeling drowsy. She pressed her hand to her forehead to try and dim the pounding headache that she was experiencing and slowly opened her eyes, taking a few moments to adjust to the warm lighting that was surrounding her. She quickly sat up, regretting it as soon as the room started to spin around her. She gripped the arm of the red velvet sofa she was lying on to steady herself and took in her surroundings. Dark wooden furniture surrounded her, decorated with various candles and satanic objects. She saw some paperwork on the coffee table in front of her and shifted forward to take a glance at it. She felt sick to her stomach when she realised she recognised the handwriting and her heart started to beat a million miles an hour when she heard the footsteps of the person it belonged to approaching the room. 

"Do you have any idea where he could be located?!" Marie asked as she frantically paced the room.  
"We have no idea, lamb. He hasn't been seen since he escaped with the time egg." Hilda replied, placing her hand on the witch's shoulder to try and calm her pacing.  
"He must be close if he could send these letters almost immediately." Ambrose said, scanning the note in his hand again. "Me and Prudence are going to search Greendale to see if he's hiding anywhere nearby." He continued, looking over to Prudence who was stood beside him.  
"I'm coming with you!" Marie said, turning towards him.  
"No, Marie, you need to stay here." Hilda said, rubbing comforting circles on Marie's back. She was clearly very upset and irrational and Hilda couldn't bare to let her leave the academy when she was in this state.  
"I need to find Zelda and kill that disgusting Blackwood man! I'm going with them!" Marie brushed Hilda's hand away. Prudence and Ambrose looked at each other and then at Hilda, who just shrugged.  
"Maybe you should come. We're gonna need all the help we can get when it comes to killing my father." Prudence said. Ambrose nodded in agreement.  
"Then it's settled. Let me grab some things then we'll be ready to go." Marie said and disappeared out of the room.

"Dearest, you're awake!" Faustus exclaimed as he walked into the room and saw Zelda sitting up. He had a smug smile on his face and his eyes had a glint of evil in them. Zelda raised a shaking hand and pointed it at him.  
"I curse thee Blackwood!" She announced but nothing happened. A moments silence passed until he let out a chuckle.  
"Aw dearest, you can't do that I'm afraid. I've stripped you of all your powers, you're helpless!" He told her, coming to stand in front of her before crouching down. "I've locked this building with magic so you can't escape and I have the Mark of Cain so you can't hurt me. You're where you belong now, with your husband, and you're going to learn to be a good and obedient wife or I will make sure you aren't the only one suffering, understand?" He sneered, his eyes boring into her soul. She nodded. She couldn't fight back, couldn't run, if she tried he'd hurt her family. She was trapped, again, except this time not by a horrific spell. No, he wouldn't let her have it 'easy', he would make sure she was fully aware and fully in control of herself this time, but have no choice but to follow his orders. 

He placed a box in front of her. "Change into this then meet me in the dining room down the corridor. If you're not there within 5 minutes they'll be heaven to pay." He chuckled and left the room. Zelda slowly opened the box and looked inside it. There was a folded dress lying in it. She pulled it out to see it was one of the one's he had bought for her during their honeymoon. Pink and floral, overly feminine, just what he liked. She quickly slipped it on and ran to the dining room, not wanting to know what 'heaven' he would give her if she didn't follow his orders.

"Please be careful." Hilda said as she pressed a kiss to both Ambrose and Prudence's foreheads.   
"We will Auntie, don't worry." Ambrose smiled at her, giving her a quick hug. Hilda stepped across so she was in front of Marie.  
"You'll find her and when you do, make sure Father Blackwood suffers in the worst way possible." Hilda said, an aggressive undertone to her voice. Marie took her hand in her own.  
"I will Hilda. He will not get away with this." She said before turning to the two younger witches. "Are we ready?" She asked. They both nodded and slung their weapons over their shoulders. Marie picked up her dagger that was lying on the table beside her and put it in her pocket. She put her bag over her shoulder and turned to wave to Hilda and the rest of the students as she descended down the stairs with Prudence and Ambrose.   
𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳 she thought as they walked into the woods.


	11. 1 For Destruction, 2 For Good Luck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: depictions of physical abuse in the last paragraph, please skip if that affects you. Stay safe xx

They searched Greendale for hours but there was no sign of Zelda or Blackwood. Finally, Marie took them back to the place in the forest where she had found Zelda's cigarette holder. "He must have teleported them to wherever he is keeping her because there's no footsteps exiting this part of the forest." Prudence said as she crouched down to inspect the ground.  
"That means they could be literally anywhere in the world." Ambrose sighed, rubbing his neck as he racked his brains for an answer to where his aunt could be.  
"Les enfants, look!" Marie gasped as she pointed to one of the trees. Perched on a branch was a single black crow, staring right at them with its beady eyes. "I saw that same crow earlier when I was looking for Zelda." She told them as she took a step towards the tree. The bird continued to stare at her.  
"Seeing a single crow means destruction is near." Prudence informed them as she came to stand next to Marie.  
"Mambo, Prudence, look! There's another one!" Ambrose said, pointing to the another tree. Both the birds jumped from their perches and landed in front of them and began to hop down a path, before stopping and turning back to look at the witches.  
"I think they want us to follow them." Prudence said.  
"Come on!" Marie said as she began to walk behind the crows. The teens followed behind her.

Zelda walked into the kitchen to see Faustus sat at the table waiting for her. "Well done dearest. See, no one has to get hurt if you do as you're told." He smirked and gestured for her to sit opposite him. She reluctantly did and looked down at her lap as his eyes bored into her. "Now, here are some rules that you will need to follow. You do everything I say without any arguing. You will never deny any of my requests. If you break any of my rules, I will hurt your precious family, got it?" He said, reaching out to take a hold of one of her hands. She flinched but nodded, slowly looking up at him. "Good, now get me a drink wife, and make it quick." He sighed and lent back in his chair, watching her intently as she poured him a glass of scotch.

The three witches followed the crows down the dark path for a few minutes until the crows stopped, looked back at them and then descended into the sky. Where the crows had been now stood an old worn down phone box that none of the witches had ever seen before. Marie slowly opened the door and stepped inside to see a number was already dialed into the phone. "Call it Mambo, maybe the number belongs to someone who can help us." Prudence said. Marie nodded and let the door gently close behind her as she pressed call on the machine and picked up the phone, listening to it ring.

As Zelda passed the glass of scotch to Faustus, the phone down the hall began to ring. "Go answer it precious." Faustus told her as he took a sip of his drink. Zelda hurried down the hall and picked up the phone. "Hello?" She quietly said.

"Zelds?!" She heard a thick french accent say. She felt tears prick her eyes when she realised who it was.  
"Marie?" She gasped.

Marie felt her stomach flip when she recognised that the person who had answered the phone was her Zelda. "Ma cherie, where are you?! We've searched everywhere. Are you okay?" Marie asked.  
"I don't know where I am. Faustus took me and he's making me be his obedient wife again and, oh Marie, I'm scared." Zelda replied, a quiet sob emitting from her.  
"Oh my Zelda, I'm going to find you, I promise. Has he hurt you?" Marie asked her.  
"No not yet." Zelda replied.

"Dearest!" Marie heard a man's voice shout through the phone. "Who is it?" She heard him say, closer this time. She listened as Zelda stuttered before he wrenched the phone from her hand.   
"Let her go Blackwood!" Marie shouted down the phone. He chuckled.  
"Good luck finding her Mambo, she's mine and you're never getting her back." He sneered and then hung up.

Zelda flinched as Faustus hung the phone up and turned to look at her. "Oh dearest, already breaking my rules!" He sighed. She looked at the floor, too scared to keep eye contact. As she was about to look up again, she felt a slap around her face and stumbled back. "You're married to me Zelda! This Mambo will never have you because you're mine!" He shouted and pushed her so she fell to the floor. He kicked her hard and she cried in pain. He crouched down so he was eye to eye with her. "You are never to speak to her again, got it?!" He sneered.  
"Yes husband." She whimpered. She could feel blood slowly trickling out of her nose and down her face.  
"Clean yourself up." Faustus demanded as he stepped around her and walked off, leaving her crying and holding her face where he had hit her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments xx


	12. The Light Is Coming

Prudence and Ambrose watched as Marie stepped out of the phone box, visibly shaken up. "Who was it?" Prudence asked.  
"Zelda. She doesn't know where she is but Blackwood was there and he hung up the phone before I could do anything and I think he's going to hurt her." Marie told them, her voice shaking slightly. She was so worried about what Faustus would do to Zelda and all she wanted was her back and safe. Ambrose placing his hand on her shoulder brought her out of her thoughts. "We'll find her, don't worry." He smiled.   
"I've wrote down the number so we can try and trace it. Let's go back to the academy and do it there in the safety of the protection you and Sister Zelda put up." Prudence told them whilst sliding the piece of paper she had written on into her pocket. They all began walking back to the academy in silence.

Zelda sat at her dressing table and wiped the blood from her nose whilst looking into the mirror. The tears that had fell down her cheek had dried by now but her eyes were still bloodshot and she was still trembling. Every time she heard any movement from downstairs, she began to panic that Faustus was coming back upstairs to her. She pressed her hand to her cheek where he had slapped her and tried to imagine it was Marie's hand. All she wanted was Marie.

She froze when she heard footsteps coming towards the room before the door swung open and Faustus came sauntering in. "Good to see you got that nasty blood off your pretty face." He said, coming to stand behind her and press his hands on her shoulders. She tried to avoid his eyes in the mirror but she could still feel them boring into her and his stare made her feel sick. "Zelda dearest, why don't you go sit on the bed?" He said, his tone threatening. Her eyes widened. It was happening again. She shook her head and felt his grip on her shoulders tighten. "Zelda, I said go sit on the bed, now." He demanded. She stood on trembling feet and slowly walked over to the bed, sitting on the very edge of it. He chuckled and came to stand in front of her. He brought his hand up to caress her cheek and she flinched at his touch. Tears began to fall down her cheeks again, making him tut. "Come on dearest, you're not very pretty when you cry. Stop it." He demanded, lifting her chin so she had no choice but to look at him. 

Just as he was about to bend down to kiss her, a blinding light filled the room. He pulled away from her to shield his eyes whilst looking around to try and identify where it was coming from. 

"Faustus Blackwood." A loud yet light voice said. It seemed to be coming from all directions of the room, filling the space with it's noise. "Faustus Blackwood, you have no right over this witch's body. If you try to even touch her again, you will feel my burning wrath!" The voice boomed before silence filled the room and the light disappeared. Faustus brought his hands away from his arms and chuckled. "Was that your idea of a prank precious? Come on Zelda, you can do better than that." He sneered before reaching down to kiss her again. Before his lips connected with hers, a large spark rose between them, making him stumble back, clutching his face where it had been burned by it. "Damn it!" He bellowed, moving his hand away to reveal blood dripping down his face. He looked at Zelda, who was just as confused as him before stumbling out of the room.

Zelda took deep breaths as she tried to calm herself from what had just occurred. Who's voice was that? Where did the light come from? She looked around the room until she noticed a note sitting next to her. She picked it up and saw it was addressed to her and decorated with different moon symbols. Written inside of it was:

𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥

Zelda gasped. It all made sense now. She knew who's voice that had been. She knew who had protected her from Faustus.

Hecate.


	13. Vinegar Tom

Zelda quickly hid the note up her sleeve when she heard Faustus coming back up the stairs and into the room. "Follow me." He demanded. She slowly stood up and followed him down the hall and through a door which lead to a different set of stairs than the ones she had taken to get upstairs. They were narrow and twisted around the further you went down. The heels of her shoes echoed throughout the dimly lit stairwell as they descended the stairs until they stopped at another door at the bottom. Faustus brought a large, old key from his pocket and unlocked the padlock that was keeping the door locked and flung it open, before entering. Zelda reluctantly followed behind him into a dark, damp room with stone walls and a smell of destruction in the air. There was a small wooden bed frame in one corner with a thin dirty mattress lying on top of it and a old wooden wardrobe on the other side of the room. 

"Sit down." Faustus demanded as he pointed to the bed. She sat right on the edge of it. She couldn't tell if her trembling was from fear or the draft that was blowing through the room. "This will be your room. You'll stay locked in here until I decide to let you out." He told her, glaring down at her with his piercing eyes.   
"Faustus please." She begged him. He sneered and went to hit her again, before remembering what that voice had said to him and stopping himself. He sighed and walked over to the wardrobe. He brought a smaller key out of his pocket and unlocked it.  
"Since you have something or someone stopping me touching you, we'll have to resort to other measures." He said as he reached his hand into the wardrobe and pulled out a cat o nine tails. Zelda's eyes widened when she saw it.  
"Since I can't touch you, you can do the honours dearest." He smirked and held out the whip for her to take. She looked up at him with widened eyes.   
"Please." She cried. He held it closer to her and she took it with shaking hands.   
"Good. Now get started, you know how it works." He smiled. 

Marie scanned through the various books and documents that filled Zelda's office. Most of them had once belonged to Faustus and Zelda just hadn't had time to get rid of them so Marie thought there may be something in them about where he could be hiding. Hilda occasionally popped in to deliver cups of tea and make sure Marie hadn't sent herself into a frenzy, but most of the time the only company she had was Zelda's stuffed familiar. Marie glanced down at the dopey looking dog who was sat under the desk, his droopy eyes looking up at her. "Where is she Vinnie?" Marie whispered, finding it ludicrous that she was talking to a dead dog. However, that feeling disappeared when the dogs eyes blinked and he jumped up to place his front paws on her lap. Marie pinched herself, thinking she must have passed out from exhaustion and was having some strange stress induced dream, but when she didn't awake, she realised the sight in front of her was really happening.

Vinegar Tom jumped down from her lap and made his way to one of the book cases standing on the far side of the room. He sniffed at a particular book on the bottom shelf and then turned around to look at Marie. She stood and went over to him and pulled out the book he was sniffing at. "What is it?" She asked him, holding out the book for him. He took it out of her hands with his mouth and placed it on the floor before using his nose to flip through the pages, stopping when he was around halfway through the book. Marie skimmed over the page and realised it was handwritten and that she recognised the handwriting. It matched perfectly with the writing on the letter that was sent to Zelda the night she disappeared. She frantically read the writing, realising it was an address to an old farm only a few miles from Greendale. That's where he was keeping Zelda.

Just as she stood to find the rest of the Spellman family to tell them her discovery, Ambrose and Prudence came racing into the office. "We've located him! They're nearby!" Ambrose announced, shoving a piece of paper with the same address written in the book into Marie's hand.   
"I know! Look." Marie said and pointed to Vinegar Tom who was sat next to the open book.  
"Vinnie?!" Ambrose exclaimed before crouching down and petting the dog.  
"How did you do that?" Prudence asked Marie.  
"I didn't do anything, he just came alive himself." She told the girl, watching as Vinegar Tom nuzzled at Ambrose's legs. He took a hold of the warlocks trouser leg in his teeth and pulled him towards one of Zelda's cigarette holders which was lying on a table. Ambrose reached down and petted his head.  
"Yeah boy, let's go find your mum." He said as the dog sniffed happily at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course I had to have my main man Vinnie T appear in this story lol
> 
> Please leave comments xx


	14. Mirror, Mirror

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: descriptions of injuries

Zelda stood there trembling after Faustus left the room. She could feel the blood trickling down her back and dripping into a puddle around her feet. She reached her hand round to feel the new wounds on her back that now covered her scars. She hissed at the pain and dropped to the floor. She curled into herself and sobbed, letting all the pain and fear out through her tears. She wanted to scream and curse Faustus for everything he had done to her but she knew if she made any noise he'd be back down there to punish her all over again. She crawled over to the now open wardrobe and looked in the mirror that was hung on the inside of the door at her wounded back. The cuts were ugly and deep. Faustus had made her whip herself over and over until he was satisfied with her pain. It was pure agony.

She curled back into a ball with her back facing the mirror and cried, her whole body shaking with her sobs. She was so scared. She knew Faustus wouldn't stop here, he would continue harming her until she broke. She wiped her eyes with her hands, leaving streaks of her own blood on her cheeks. She turned to look at the mirror again and the sight made her sob harder. She squeezed her eyes shut to try and block out the pain.

She stayed like that for a few moments until she heard a knocking sound against the mirror and her name being spoken in a sweet French accent. She opened her eyes to see Marie's face in the mirror.  
"Marie?!" She gasped, shifting closer to the mirror.  
"Oh ma cherie, what has he done to you?" Marie asked, placing her hand on the mirror. Zelda mirrored her actions so they're palms were pressed together.  
"He made me whip myself." Zelda sobbed. Marie's blood boiled at that. She was going to kill Blackwood when they found him.  
"Oh Zee. We're coming, don't worry. We've located you and me, Ambrose and Prudence are leaving tonight. He won't get away with this, I promise." Marie told her, feeling tears run down her own cheeks.  
"I'm scared Marie." Zelda whispered.  
"I know my darling, I know. I would give anything to be able to hold you right now." Marie replied, watching Zelda try to hold back more tears.

"Mambo, we're leaving now." Zelda heard Prudence say in the background. Marie nodded in the direction of her voice then turned back to Zelda.  
"I'm coming cherie." She said and blew a kiss to her. Zelda gave a sad smile before Marie's reflection disappeared. 

"Do you have the weapons?" Marie asked Ambrose and Prudence as they made their way down the stairs to the front door.   
"Yes, and Melvin said he'll contact us if anymore letters arrive whilst we're gone." Ambrose told her as he pushed the front door open. Vinegar Tom followed behind them, sniffing at the air to see if he could catch any scent of danger.  
"Excellent, let's go get Zelda back." Marie said and they began walking towards the woods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments xx


	15. The Rescue

Faustus scanned through the books that were spread across his desk looking for a spell that could break a protection. Zelda was no use to him if he couldn't touch her. He got to a chapter on breaking protections and came across the perfect spell. He chuckled as he scribbled it on a piece of paper and stood from his desk to go see his wife.

Ambrose, Prudence and Marie looked up at the farm house that was stood in front of them. Rain was pouring from the sky and the occasional strike of lightning illuminated the dark stone of the house, showing them the sign hanging next to the front door that read 'Blackwood Estate'. The only light coming from the house was from a window on the third floor and they could just about make out the silhouette of Faustus Blackwood pacing back and forth across the room through the thin curtain.

"So shall we just barge in?" Ambrose asked, watching the shadow of the man.   
"No! We have to be careful. He has Zelda and if we go barging in there he might hurt her." Marie replied. "We should go around the back and see if there's anyway to get in there." She continued before making her way around the house. The younger witches followed her, both holding their swords in their hands.

They found a door at the back and when they peered into it they could make out that it had a set of stairs leading upwards behind it. Just as Ambrose was about to slowly open it, Marie stopped him.  
"Look over there." She said, pointing to two wooden doors on the ground that looked like it lead into a cellar. There was a dim light shining through the gaps in the wood.  
"How about me and Ambrose go through this back door and you check out the cellar?" Prudence said to Marie who nodded. So the two younger witches slowly opened the backdoor and disappeared inside.

Marie went over to the cellar doors and tugged at the damp wood. Luckily it opened easily, most of the wood rotting and weak. She looked down and saw there was a dark stone staircase leading down towards the light source. She began to make her way down, leaving the cellar doors open. 

She eventually got to another large wooden door at the bottom. The room behind it was were the light was coming from, shining through the crack underneath it. A few steps away from her was a second staircase quite similar to the one she had just descended. Marie tried to pull the door open but it was locked. She heard a gasp from behind the door, indicating that there was someone in there. She summoned her magic and the door unlocked, allowing her to pull it open.

Before her was a small stone cellar with a wardrobe and bed in it, and cowering away in the far corner was her Zelda.  
"Zee!" She gasped and rushed towards her.  
"Marie!" Zelda cried and fell into Marie's arms, sobbing and holding tight onto her.   
"Oh ma cherie, what has he done to you?" Marie asked, feeling tears fall down her own cheeks as she felt the harsh wounds on Zelda's back. Before Zelda could reply, she heard footsteps behind them. Marie slowly turned to see Faustus Blackwood stood in the doorway, his eyes glinting with evil and a smug smile on his face.

"Well dearest, who have you got here?" He chuckled as he began to approach Zelda.  
"You stay away from her!" Marie snarled at him, standing in front of the redhead to block her from him.  
"Move Mambo, she's not worth getting hurt for. She's pathetic." He spat, glaring at Zelda, who was shaking behind Marie's protective stance.  
"No, you're the pathetic one Blackwood. Now I suggest you let us leave or I will kill you." Marie demanded, bringing her sharp knife out of her pocket.  
Faustus just laughed. "I have the mark of cain, I can't be killed." He chuckled, stepping closer to the two women. 

"But you can be badly hurt." A voice said from behind him. He turned and Ambrose and Prudence were stood behind him, their swords in one hand and magic fizzing in their other.  
"Hello daughter, Ambrose." He smiled, before lifting his hand to reveal his own power sizzling in his palm. Ambrose and Prudence looked at each other before nodding and charging towards him. Ambrose tackled him to the floor as Prudence pressed her sword to his throat.

"Marie! Take Zelda and get out of here quickly!" Prudence shouted as Faustus tried to struggle out of their grip.

"Come on Zelds." Marie hurriedly said as she wrapped an arm around Zelda's waist to help her stay up and made their way towards the door. They narrowly missed a spark of magic being thrown their way by Faustus before quickly going up the stairs towards the cellar door. They made it out and began to walk across the long stretch of farm land that was between the house and the Greendale woods. The rain was pouring hard and thunder and lightning was sounding throughout the sky, which was covered in thick black clouds. 

They were halfway across the field before a gunshot was fired behind them and Zelda cried out as she fell to the floor. The bullet had hit her back. Marie quickly helped her up and began to go faster. Another shot was fired but it missed them. 3 more shots were fired before they heard Faustus yelp behind them. They managed to get to the woods before Zelda became to weak to walk. Marie scooped her into her arms and teleported them to the academy hallway, before shouting for help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	16. Cold Marble Floors

Sabrina raced through the hallways of Hell, searching for Lilith. She would know how to help rescue her Aunt Zelda surely, plus she needed an update on how they were going to fix the time paradox. She finally reached Lilith's chambers and burst in without even knocking, but Lilith was no where to be seen. She wasn't at her dressing table, she wasn't in her usual spot on her chaise lounge and she wasn't in bed. "Lilith?!" Sabrina called out, before hearing a tiny whimper coming from the en suite. Sabrina cautiously crept into the en suite to see Lilith sitting on the cold marble floor, clutching her stomach and crying.

"Lilith?! What's wrong?" Sabrina asked, rushing to the woman's side and noticing the blood slowly pooling around her.  
"It's... the... baby." Lilith said through sobs. Sabrina looked at her, shocked.  
"What baby?!" She asked.  
"I'm pregnant Sabrina." Lilith told her before crying out. Sabrina stopped questioning her as she grabbed a towel from the towel railing and placed it under Lilith before coming back beside her and rubbing her back.  
"I'm going to get my Aunt Hilda so she can help you. I'll be right back!" She said before racing from the room and disappearing.

A few minutes later, she came running back into the en suite with Hilda following behind her.   
"Okay lamb, how far along are you?" Hilda asked Lilith as she set out to place more towels around her and fetch a warm damp cloth to mop her brow.   
"About a month." Lilith mumbled, trying and failing to hold back more whimpers and cries.  
"Okay let's see what the problem is." Hilda said as she crouched in front of her. A few moments later, she sat back up and looked at Lilith with a look of shock.   
"Are you sure you're only a month along?" She asked.  
"Yes." Lilith replied. Hilda looked at Sabrina with a worried look on her face before summoning her midwife tools.

"Okay sweetheart. The baby is coming, and it's already fully formed by the looks of it." Hilda told Lilith as she mopped the sweat from Lilith's brow.  
"W...What?" Lilith stuttered. Sabrina's eyes widened. Oh no. This was the time paradoxes fault. This was her fault.

"I'm not entirely sure how this has happened but don't worry, I'm going to make sure you and the baby are just fine." Hilda said as she set out to make Lilith more comfortable.  
"Auntie... I think I know how this happened." Sabrina whispered. Hilda looked at her, confused.  
"I created a time paradox!" Sabrina admitted. Hilda glared at her, confusion and anger etched on her face, before Lilith took her attention by crying out in pain.  
"Sh, it's okay." Hilda soothed her, giving Sabrina one more angry look before putting her whole attention on Lilith.

...

Melvin and Elspeth heard Marie calling out and rushed down the stairs, seeing Marie kneeling on the floor with an unconscious Zelda cradled in her arms. "Where's Hilda?!" Marie asked them as tears streamed down her face.   
"We don't know, but we'll help you get her upstairs." Melvin said as they helped lift Zelda from the ground.

They took her into her bedroom and laid her on the bed just as Ambrose and Prudence appeared in the bedroom. "Auntie!" Ambrose gasped, rushing to his aunt's side.  
"Where's Blackwood?" Marie asked them as Melvin and Elspeth came in with medical supplies.  
"He's restrained in the academy basement for the moment but I don't know how long the restraints will hold him for. Plus, the terrors outside are getting worse." Prudence told her, glancing at the window that was covered in raindrops. Marie nodded before turning her attention back to her lover and getting to work trying to fix her wounds.

After she and the students had spent 3 hours patching up Zelda, the students left Marie and her alone. Marie sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at Zelda before bursting into tears. They'd been in this position before, but it was worse now. Marie truly loved Zelda now and the idea of her being hurt and possibly dying killed her.

She gently stroked Zelda's hair away from her face and pressed a light kiss to her forehead before laying beside her and sobbing.  
"Wake up ma cherie, please wake up." She whispered

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	17. Bruises On Snow White Skin

"You need to push Lilith!" Hilda told Lilith as she let out another blood curdling scream. This was far more painful than she had imagined and she wasn't sure if she would get through it. She was starting to feel light-headed and the room around her was spinning. She could vaguely make out a damp cloth being pressed to her forehead and moved her head slightly to see Sabrina kneeling beside her.   
"Come on Lilith, you can do this!" She smiled at her, letting her grip her hand as she pushed again. The room became more blurry.  
"You're almost there lamb, just one more push!" Hilda told her. Lilith nodded and pushed once more before hearing the cry of her baby. 

She slumped back against the bath whilst Sabrina helped her get more comfortable and Hilda cleaned up the baby. After a few moments she brought the screaming bundle of joy to her and said, "It's a boy." She placed the child on Lilith's chest. Lilith looked down at her son, his scrunched up little face was adorable despite the deafening cries that were coming out of his mouth. "Sh, sh, it's okay." She whispered as she gently rocked him. The movement made the room begin to spin again.

Sabrina watched as Lilith's face began to lose colour. "Auntie!" She gasped, getting Hilda's attention as Lilith fainted. Hilda rushed to her side, trying to keep her upright.

"Aunt Hilda look, she's loosing too much blood!" 

...

Marie could just about hear Zelda's quiet breathing, the only thing indicating that she was still alive. Marie grasped at her hand whilst she watched over her lover, gently caressing the hair from her pale face. There was a harsh purple bruise on the side of Zelda's face, a bright contrast to her snow white skin. Marie pressed a light kiss to it and as she lifted her face away, she felt soft eyelashes brushing her cheek.

She pulled back and saw Zelda's beautiful green eyes staring up at her. "Zee!" She gasped as Zelda blinked.   
"Did we get away?" She quietly asked.  
"Yes ma cherie, you're safe." Marie replied, stroking her cheek with her thumb as she cupped her face. Zelda slowly started to sit up and Marie quickly went to help her.  
"Careful mon amour, you're quite injured." Marie told her as she got into a sitting position. She watched as Zelda's eyes filled with tears and quickly pulled her into her arms.  
"I'm so sorry Zelds. I should have gone after you when you ran. I could of stopped all this from happening." She said, feeling tears run down her own face. Zelda nuzzled into her chest.  
"It wasn't your fault." She whispered.

They sat in silence, cuddled in each others arms. Marie gently scratched at the base of Zelda's head, knowing that would sooth her. Eventually, they both drifted off into a much needed sleep. Ambrose and Prudence came into the bedroom to check on them but when they found them like that, decided to not disturb them.

...

Hilda handed the baby to Sabrina as she placed a white sheet over Lilith's body.  
"This is all my fault Auntie. If I hadn't been so stupid and created the time paradox, Lilith would have survived her birth. She would have been ready." Sabrina cried, cuddling the small baby in her arms.  
"No! Creating the time paradox was very stupid but please don't blame yourself for Lilith's passing. From the looks of it, whether the time paradox had happened or not, she wouldn't have been able to have this baby safely, her body just couldn't handle it." Hilda said, placing a hand on her niece's shoulder.

"What are we going to do with the baby?" Sabrina asked her.  
"Well there's no way in heaven he's going to his father. We'll look after him, me and your Aunt Zelda, Oh!" She gasped as she remembered her sister. "We need to get home now, come on!" She said as she grabbed Sabrina's hand and teleported them and the baby back to the academy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments xx


	18. Blood On Floral

Hilda and Sabrina appeared in the academy common room with Lilith's baby, where Prudence and Ambrose were currently sat, trying to work out a way to stop the Eldritch Terrors. 

"Auntie!" Ambrose gasped when they appeared in front of him.  
"Is your Aunt Zelda okay?" Hilda asked him as she handed Sabrina the baby.   
"I think so, she's awake and upstairs with Marie. Who's that?" Ambrose pointed at the now crying baby.  
"It's Lilith's baby." Sabrina replied, rocking the child to try and sooth him.  
"Where's Lilith?" Prudence asked. Hilda and Sabrina both gave each other a look filled with sadness.  
"She passed away during her birth. We tried everything to save her but..." Hilda trailed off, looking at the baby that was in her niece's arms. Prudence nodded and went over to Sabrina.  
"Let me take the baby whilst you two go and see Zelda." She smiled as she took the baby.   
"Thank you." Sabrina smiled and they both went to find Zelda.

Hilda knocked on Zelda's bedroom door and a few moments later, Marie opened it a crack.  
"Where's Zelda?" Hilda instantly asked her.  
"She's in here resting, I don't think we should disturb her." Marie replied. "Maybe come back in an hour or so?"   
"I will decide when I see my sister." Hilda huffed and pushed past her. Sabrina slowly followed her.

Zelda was currently lying on the bed asleep, still in the dress Faustus had made her wear. The blood stains were a stark contrast to the pastel floral print and Sabrina felt sick seeing them. 

"Zelds?" Hilda said loudly. Zelda slowly opened her eyes, much to Hilda and Sabrina's delight.  
"Are you okay Auntie?" Sabrina asked, carefully sitting on the bed besides her aunt.  
"I'm fine." Zelda weakly replied, placing her hand on her niece's.

"Would you like me to get you a balm for your injuries or something, sister?" Hilda asked, sitting beside her as well.  
"No Hilda, really, I'm fine." Zelda replied, slowly sitting up and wincing.  
"Zelda! You're back is covered in blood so I'd hate to think what your injuries look like!" Hilda pushed.  
"I said I'm fine!" Zelda snapped. "Just leave, please. I'm fine on my own." She demanded, giving them both a stern stare. Hilda nodded and stood up, beckoning Sabrina to follow her as she walked out of the room. 

"Do you want me to leave as well, ma cherie?" Marie asked as she approached the bed. Zelda shook her head. "Okay, I'll stay." Marie sat next to her and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more drama coming in the next chapter lol, I just wanted a chapter that showed Sabrina and Hilda's reaction to Zelda's injuries along with how Zelda still doesn't accept comfort or sympathy from them :(


	19. Stay

Zelda sat on the bed fiddling with the bandage around her hand whilst she waited for Marie to return from talking to Prudence and Ambrose about the upcoming terrors. The pain that flowed through her body was almost unbearable, making her wince everytime she moved. She refused to look at herself in the mirror on the wardrobe, knowing her injuries looked just as bad as they felt. Marie had told her to stay in bed until she returned, saying that if anything happened to summon her rather than leave the room to find her. Zelda had agreed, though she hated being treated as an invalid. She wanted to be in on the action, helping the coven just as a good high priestess should, not stuck in bed covered in wounds given to her by her ex husband.

The door to the bedroom slowly creaked open and Marie stepped in. "What's happening? How bad are the terrors? Is Faustus still restrained?" Zelda instantly questioned her, sitting up more.

"Slow down cherie. Don't worry yourself. Ambrose and Prudence have everything under control and Blackwood is still in the dungeon. The rest of the coven are preparing to battle the terrors and your niece is leading them excellently." Marie told her, sitting beside her and tucking a stray piece of hair behind Zelda's ear. Zelda smiled at the thought of Sabrina leading the coven, knowing her headstrong niece would be doing a good job of it. But it still hurt her that she wasn't there helping. 

"I'm going to go down and help them. They going to need me." Zelda said, beginning to stand up. 

"No, no, no!" Marie exclaimed, grabbing onto Zelda's arm. "You're staying right here. You're not well enough to be down there, it's too dangerous. The coven will be fine, they prepared to fight whatever is coming." 

"Marie! I'm their high priestess! I need to be down there. They can't fight without their coven's leader!"

"No. I'm not letting you." Marie crossed her arms, standing in front of Zelda.

"I'm going down there!" Zelda raised her voice slightly and stepped around Marie.

"Zelda!" Marie shouted, making her lover jump and turn to look at her, her eyes filled with fear. Marie sighed and gently took her hand in her own. "I can't let you get hurt, ma cherie, I just can't. You're already so injured, Blackwood did so many unspeakable things to you. You might die down there, and I can't let that happen." Tears were trickling down Marie'a cheeks so Zelda slowly reached up to wipe them away. "Please Zee, just stay here and rest. I'll stay with you if you want, just please don't go down there."

Zelda nodded. "Okay, but stay with me." She asked, taking Marie's hand once more and sitting back down on the bed. Marie softly smiled at her and sat next to her.

...

"Prudence, how's the baby?" Sabrina asked as she raced into the lounge were Prudence and Ambrose were.

"He's fine, sleeping soundly. How are the coven?"

Sabrina sighed and ran her hand through her hair. "Stressed, but Aunt Hilda is currently preparing them all with power enhancing potions and protection spells. Hopefully that will be enough to defeat the terrors. Have you found anything to help with the Blackwood situation?"

Ambrose placed an open book on the coffee table. "We've found a few spells that could weaken the Mark Of Cain, but none to completely destroy it. If only Lilith hadn't given it to him and he would be a lot easier to deal with." He told her.

"Yeah well, Lilith's gone now, so we can't do anything about that." Sabrina snapped. Prudence and Ambrose both glanced at each other, surprised by Sabrina's tone.

"Marie's promised to keep Zelda protected, so we don't need to worry about her." Prudence said, quickly changing the subject.

"Okay, great, Then let's fight this war." Sabrina said and marched out of the room.


End file.
